Regular readers will know just how much I love to shop at Victoria Square, Belfast! For me it has the perfect balance of high street and high end brands, with everything a girl could lust for all under one roof!

However Victoria Square is much more than just a fashion destination, as this weekend’s "Wedding Event" is set to prove (Saturday 05 and 06 September) when it officially launches its ‘Wedding Gift List’ service, the first multi-store wedding gift list service of its kind in Northern Ireland. The event will also showcase everything you need for the big day all in one place!

The online gift card service offers the gift of choice to couples with a variety of over 50 fashion, technological, beauty and jewellery shops and 18 restaurants to purchase from, minimising the risk of brides and grooms receiving unwanted gifts.

In the spirit of fun Victoria Square also commissioned a wedding poll to see just how many married or engaged couples had re-gifted an unwanted wedding present, and it turns out a staggering 40% have re-gifted! The study also uncovered some of the weird and wonderful gifts received including literally everything from toilet brushes and plastic bed sheets to banjos and baby name books!!

Victoria Square then headed out to interview various couples to discover some of the worst gifts they had received in the past, not surprisingly tea sets and mugs featured heavily, afterall we are rather well known for our love of tea in this region! Hehe.

It’s no surprise that the most popular wedding gifts have changed through the years and many couples who didn’t have a wedding list also received multiples of the same items. The most common included: toasters and towels in the 80’s, towels and mugs in the 90’s, bed sheets and wine glasses in the 00’s and picture frames in most recent years.

Much loved Northern Irish cook and cookery writer, Jenny Bristow, who married her husband 1977, said: “In our day there wasn’t the option of setting up a gift list and even asking for gifts was unheard of. It was up to friends and family to buy whatever they thought appropriate. I remember at the time we received Ainsley Vases, in every shape, shade and size but the most memorable gift was a cheque from a guest who hadn’t signed it, meaning that we couldn’t cash it. We had an inkling of who it was from but never went back to ask for their signature out of sheer embarrassment, but we had a good laugh about it at least!”

Michelle Jackson, Victoria Square centre Manager explains, “Our Wedding Gift List signals the change in consumer needs – they want more choice than the standard gift card and this service offers exactly that. It allows friends and family to contribute towards a Gift Card so couples can buy exactly what they want not only for the home, but money towards wedding rings, a honeymoon wardrobe or a romantic meal post-wedding too.”

More information about the Wedding Event at Victoria Square can be found at www.victoriasquare.com and the Wedding Gift List service can also be set up here too.